Means for locking vertically sliding glasses of automobiles



| PERAS 3,140,597

MEANS FOR LOOKING VERTICALLY SLIDING GLASSES OF AUTOMOBILES July 14, 1964 Filed June 25, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Ihvan'l'or PERAS 3,140,597

MEANS FOR LOCKING VERTICALLY SLIDING GLASSES OF AUTOMOBILES July 14, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 25, 1962 I nve nto r Pems Lucien Attorneys United States Patent 3,140,597 MEANS FOR LOCKING VERTICALLY SLIDING GLASSES 0F AUTOMOBILES Lucien Pras, Billancourt, France, assignor to Regie Nationaie des Usines Renault, Billancourt, France Filed June 25, 1962, Ser. No. 205,025 Claims priority, application France July 11, 1961 4 Claims. (Cl. 70-90) Side or rear doors of automobiles are often equipped with vertically sliding glasses with or without counterpoising devices but without any crank handle or other operating systems.

Under these conditions, some means must be provided to lock these glasses on their end positions and in an intermediate position, that is, in an uppermost or closed position to prevent thefts in the .car, and in the intermediate and lowermost positions to hold the glass panel against movement when the door hinged about a horizontal axis is tilted or opened.

To this end the present invention provides a sliding glass locking device for automobiles, whereby a keeper having a horizontal retaining edge is mounted on the lower portion of a glass and adapted to co-operate in its uppermost position with a first sector-shaped pivoting bolt member controlled from outside by means of an eccentric-type key-operated barrel actuating a link, and in its intermediate or lowermost position with two pivoting spring-loaded hook-shaped bolts.

The invention will be better understood from the following description made with reference to the accompanying drawings illustrating a typical embodiment of the locking device of this invention as applied by Way of example to the sliding glass of the rear folding door of a commercial type automobile. In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a vertical section taken through the rear door, along the mesial plane thereof;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary view showing on a larger scale the upper portion of the preceding view;

FIGURE 3 is a detail view of the same device as seen in the direction of the arrow III of FIG. 2;

FIGURE 4 is a fragmentary view showing on a larger scale the inner portion of FIG. 1 in the closed and open position of the door, respectively, and

FIGURE 5 is a view taken in the direction of the arrow F of FIG. 4.

The locking device according to the present invention is mounted on a rear door comprising a double-walled panel 1 hinged on the body of the vehicle about its lower edge 2. The upper edge of this door which is approximately level with the waist line of the body is open along a slot 3 to permit the upward closing movement of the glass 4 (when the glass is extracted completely the total height of the door and glass assembly is substantially V 1 equal to the height of the body of the vehicle).

This glass is suitably guided in inner lateral channels of the door and its weight is counterpoised or not by means of devices not within the scope of this invention.

The lower edge of the glass 4 carries a frame member 5 having welded on its central portion a keeper 6 having a horizontal retaining edge 6 having for example the shape of a horizontal U.

The locking device consists of two elements, one for locking the glass in its uppermost or closed position (FIGS.

3,140,597 Patented July 14, 1964 2 and 3), and another for locking the glass in the intermediate or lowermost position (FIG. 4 and 5). The device for locking the glass in its uppermost or closed position comprises a lock barrel 7 mounted on the outer wall of the door and adapted to receive a key from outside. This barrel controls through an eccentric pin 8 and a link 9 a sector-shaped bolt 10 pivoted on a pin 17 illustrated in its locked position in FIGS. 2 and 3.

When the lock barrel 7 is rotated in the direction of the arrow 18 the sector 10 revolves in the direction of the arrow 19 and retracts before the keeper 6, thus unlocking the glass which can be lowered.

The door is not provided with an upper frame surrounding the glass, as this frame consists of the body of the vehicle itself; therefore, the door cannot be opened unless the glass is lowered first at least down to the intermediate locking position. On the other hand, the door cannot be reclosed unless the glass is partially retracted.

The locking devices for the intermediate and lowermost positions become automatically operative when the door is in its open position.

These devices comprise a support consisting of two members 27, 31 interconnected by a bridge piece 32, member 27 carrying through uprights 28, 29, 30 a pin 20 for pivotally mounting the bolts 11, 12 urged by springs 24, 23 respectively in the direction of the arrows f1 and f2.

Under the influence of these springs, the bolt 11 may abut against the bridge piece 32 by means of a curved portion 25 of its extension 26, and the bolt 12 may abut against upright 29 with its bent portion 33.

When the door is open the catch 11 of bolt 11 is adapted to retain in the intermediate position the lower fiat edge 6 of keeper 6; on the other hand, in the lowermost position of the glass the catch 12 of bolt 12 locks the keeper 6 against a fixed elastic stop 13.

In this position the bolts 11 and 12 may pivot through a moderate angle and independently of each other.

On the other hand, in the closed position of the door the edge 16 of bolt 12 engages the portion 25 of bolt 11, and bolts 11 and 12 are pushed back together, outside the path of the glass, by an arm 15 pivoted on a pin which is rigidly connected with the latch 12. This arm 15 extends through the lower portion of the door and is pushed back by a suitably shaped member 22 rigid with the body of the vehicle. A sealing element or packing 21 engages the arm 15.

Thus, with this locking device the glass is safely held against any undesired removal from the door structure irrespective of the door position, for instance inclined, horizontal, or folded down.

I claim:

1. Device for locking a vertically slidably glass in the door of an automobile, notably a door hingedly mounted about a horizontal axis along its lower edge, which comprises a keeper having a horizontal retaining edge which is rigid with the lower portion of the glass and adapted in the uppermost position thereof toco-operate with a first sector-shaped pivoted bolt actuated by means of a key operated barrel provided with an eccentric pin actuating a link pivoted on said sector-shaped bolt, in the intermediate position with a long bolt, and in the lowermost position with a short bolt, said long and short bolts, each provided with a catch enabling them to retain the keeper in the open door position, being pivoted on a common fixed pivot pin and adapted to be locked in their disengaged position when the door is closed while being urged toward said keeper by separate springs, the short bolt being adapted however to carry along the long bolt beyond a certain angle of pivoting and in a direction opposite to the direction of engagement by means of a stop carried by the long bolt and of an arm pivoted on said short bolt, said arm extending through the lower portion of the door so as to be pushed back by a section member rigid with the body of the vehicle when said door is being closed.

2. Locking device according to claim 1, characterized in that said keeper consists of a horizontal U-shaped member having one side welded on a lower frame element of the glass.

3. Locking device according to claim 1, characterized in that the barrel controlling the first bolt is actuated from outside the vehicle.

4. Locking device according to claim 1, characterized in that said arm for actuating the lower bolts is provided 10 with a sealing packing.

No references cited. 

1. DEVICE FOR LOCKING A VERTICALLY SLIDABLY GLASS IN THE DOOR OF AN AUTOMOBILE, NOTABLY A DOOR HINGEDLY MOUNTED ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS ALONG ITS LOWER EDGE, WHICH COMPRISES A KEEPER HAVING A HORIZONTAL RETAINING EDGE WHICH IS RIGID WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF THE GLASS AND ADAPTED IN THE UPPERMOST POSITION THEREOF TO CO-OPERATE WITH A FIRST SECTOR-SHAPED PIVOTED BOLT ACTUATED BY MEANS OF A KEY OPERATED BARREL PROVIDED WITH AN ECCENTRIC PIN ACTUATING A LINK PIVOTED ON SAID SECTOR-SHAPED BOLT, IN THE INTERMEDIATE POSITION WITH A LONG BOLT, AND IN THE LOWERMOST POSITION WITH A SHORT BOLT, SAID LONG AND SHORT BOLTS, EACH PROVIDED WITH A CATCH ENABLING THEM TO RETAIN THE KEEPER IN THE OPEN DOOR POSITION, BEING PIVOTED ON A COMMON FIXED PIVOT PIN AND ADAPTED TO BE LOCKED IN THEIR DISENGAGED POSITION WHEN THE DOOR IS CLOSED WHILE BEING URGED TOWARD SAID KEEPER BY SEPARATE SPRINGS, THE SHORT BOLT BEING ADAPTED HOWEVER TO CARRY ALONG THE LONG BOLT BEYOND A CERTAIN ANGLE OF PIVOTING AND IN A DIRECTION OPPOSITE TO THE DIRECTION OF ENGAGEMENT BY MEANS OF A STOP CARRIED BY THE LONG BOLT AND OF AN ARM PIVOTED ON SAID SHORT BOLT, SAID ARM EXTENDING THROUGH THE LOWER PORTION OF THE DOOR SO AS TO BE PUSHED BACK BY A SECTION MEMBER RIGID WITH THE BODY OF THE VEHICLE WHEN SAID DOOR IS BEING CLOSED. 